This wasn't a brainless boast.
Luoyue truly believed that the so-called elite troops under the lord's tent were far inferior to them.
Not only were they extremely mobile, but their combat quality was also the highest he'd ever seen in his life.
One of the main reasons he was able to maintain such good security in Wanzhou was because of the strength of the troops under his command.
"If that's the case, when the lord is seriously ill and there are foreign invaders, they should be riled up and swear to annihilate the enemy instead of being afraid to fight and spreading rumors," Cheng Yuan said. "I suspect that these people are being manipulated, and the mastermind behind the scenes is the main culprit."
How could they feel at ease if they didn't dig out the hidden dangers?
They were fighting anxiously at the front, and if someone suddenly stabbed them in the back, it would be over.
Luoyue's eyes turned cold, and he said solemnly, "The two counselors are really thoughtful."
He took this matter to heart and sent people to keep a close eye on those people in secret.
After a few days, there was progress.
After following the clues, Luoyue was shocked by the information he found. When he took a closer look, he was so angry that his beard was about to fly up.
He hurriedly suppressed his boiling anger and sent someone to discuss it with Luoyue and Meng Heng.
The soldier who spread the rumors was a local grain transport worker recruited from Hu County.
What did a grain transport worker do?
They were mainly responsible for the supply of logistics and ensuring the continuation of the battle.
If there was a problem with the grain supply, how could the frontline soldiers fight the war?
"The two counselors probably wouldn't have guessed who was secretly contacting them …"
Luoyue's gaze was deep, and his tone was solemn. His clenched fists and tensed veins exposed his current state of mind.
Meng Heng and Cheng Yuan looked at each other and asked in unison.
"Who is it?"
Luoyue pointed at the position of the sand table. The two looked and saw that it was right inside Hu County!
A mole?
The same word popped up in their minds, and their faces darkened.
"How could it be a mole? There were no signs before this … "
Fortunately, they discovered it early. If they waited for the two sides to really enter a stalemate and the mole stabbed them again, they would be dead.
Luoyue said with a sullen face, "I heard that Hu County is what it is today because of the old master. When the Old Master was appointed as the County Governor of Hu County, he had spent a great deal of effort in order to rectify the local bandits that ran amok and the landowning families that seized the people's farmland. These landowning households have learned their lesson and have been behaving themselves all these years. They've watched as so much fertile land returned to the common people, but they haven't tasted the sweetness themselves. It's not like they haven't borne a grudge in their hearts. "
Before Liu She became the County Chief of Hu County, Hu County had been a barren land and unruly rivers.
Bandits roamed about, the country gentry exploited them, and there were years of drought. Those who could escape had all fled, and those who couldn't had all accepted their fate. It was like hell on earth.
The local powers were used to being the local tyrants. They refused to accept that there was someone controlling them. Nine successive prefectural governors died in office or on the way to their new posts.
Some died in the hands of bandits, some died in their plots, and some died in collusion with officials and bandits!
Not only did Liu She survive, but he also forcibly opened the mouths of the local powers. He personally took a lot of benefits from them and distributed them to the common people. He reclaimed wasteland, dug water sources, and changed tax policies. Under his rule, Hu County became a major grain-producing county in Dongqing.
The local landowning households and the country gentry also benefited from this, but they weren't satisfied because the common people and the land they farmed were their property. If Liu She hadn't interfered, the income generated from these properties would have been theirs.
In other words, Liu She had taken away their interests, and it wasn't just a little!
However, the situation was stronger than they were. They couldn't defeat Liu She or Liu Xi, so they could only swallow their grievances.
Now that the enemy was at the gates of the city, it was a good time to take advantage of the chaos to redistribute.
Feng Jue, who worked under Huang Song, was quite cunning. He had already sent spies to Hu County to investigate before the war started. He knew that Hu County wasn't as united as a piece of iron.
People's faces were flushed with wine, and people's hearts were moved by money.
Feng Jue firmly grasped their weakness and used it as a breakthrough to incite defection.
However, these people weren't really stupid.
People who pursued benefits were always very precise when it came to calculating gains and losses.
On one hand, they kept Huang Song in suspense, but on the other, they behaved themselves. Their attitudes were quite ambiguous, and they didn't offend either side.
Who knew that Jiang Pengji would actually fall ill!
He was bedridden and didn't have an heir. His situation was terrible! Cangzhou had lost, and Huang Song's forces had taken over a county. The battlefront in Wanzhou and Hu County were passively attacked. From the looks of it, Huang Song's side was in a good situation. Even God was on his side!
At this moment, these speculators began to panic!
If war was compared to business, they would invest in the early stages and naturally have to plunder the spoils of war to make up for the expenses in the later stages. Fighting the local tyrants was the best choice.
If they didn't do something now, would Huang Song let go of their property when he really attacked Hu County?
He would definitely slaughter them!
Some forces in Hu County secretly sided with Huang Song without hesitation.
Although they didn't help Huang Song much, they sent people to spread rumors and shake the army's morale. This was considered a deposit and a demonstration of their attitude.
When the situation of the war gradually became clear and Huang Song developed, they would increase their investment until they completely sided with him.
The investment was risky, but the returns were great.
If they gambled correctly, the prosperity of the family was just around the corner.
Luoyue only found out this much, but it already made him extremely angry.
"I only hate that the old master didn't kill them all back then. Why didn't he slaughter all these troublemakers?" Luoyue's tone was quite harsh. Anyone who knew that someone was going to stab them in the back would feel uncomfortable. "If they were killed earlier, it wouldn't be so disgusting today!"
Meng Heng's eyes slanted and he said softly, "General Luoyue, be careful with your words."
How could he speak ill of the lord's father?
If this got out, wouldn't Luoyue be afraid that he would make things difficult for him?
Luoyue's face darkened, and he kept his mouth shut.
"Hold back for now and collect evidence of their betrayal and collusion with the enemy. Once we have the evidence, we'll lock them up and wait for the lord to deal with them. " Meng Heng looked calm on the surface, but he was gritting his teeth in anger. He didn't believe that with his lord's hot temper, she could tolerate such a shameful betrayal!
Luoyue thought that Meng Heng wanted to be lenient and was instantly unhappy.
Cheng Yuan reminded him, "Think about the group of people in Chongzhou."
When Jiang Pengji first arrived in Chongzhou, there was a bloody incident as soon as she landed. The leaders of a few large clans were killed by her. Although the members of the clan were not affected, they were suppressed to the point where they could not lift their heads. The entire clan could only live with their tails between their legs.
How many years had it been?
They had fallen to an unimaginable level.
As long as the lord was strong, the few clans in Chongzhou who had offended her could forget about rising again in this lifetime.
On the contrary, the Cui family of Chongzhou had good foresight. They clung to the lord's golden thighs and used the rice paper to accumulate a rich family fortune.
Back then, they only killed a few leaders because the lord had forcefully shifted the blame to the evidence of collusion with the enemy.
The group of short-sighted fools in Hu County. Once the evidence was conclusive, wouldn't they turn their entire clan upside down?
Meng Heng said in a low voice, "The lord has a strong temper. If this matter reaches her ears, she won't be able to tolerate it if she doesn't kill a bunch of them."
Tolerate?
Hehe, I'll give them three consecutive Daoist pampering …
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